NYC's Epicured Acquires Chiyo
New York-based Epicured, a food-is-medicine company, has acquired Chiyo, a startup focused on women's health. The deal is intended to strengthen and scale Epicured's offerings in the women's health vertical. The acquisition reflects consolidation and growth within the specialized food delivery and health-tech sectors.
- Epicured is expanding its business-to-business-to-consumer (B2B2C) model through partnerships with healthcare providers, including recent Medicaid contracts in New York State. This allows clinicians to prescribe Epicured's medically tailored meals for a variety of chronic conditions, with some patients receiving coverage for up to 18 months. - Chiyo has a similar B2B2C approach, partnering with over 100 women's health practitioners to integrate its nutritional programs into patient care. The company is also developing a digital platform to provide personalized nutrition plans and self-guided content for its users. - Epicured has demonstrated significant growth, with meal volume increasing by 20% week over week. The company operates its own "healing food" facility, giving it the capacity to increase its current output by a factor of ten. - Chiyo has served over 100,000 meals since its launch in 2021 and experienced a 300% growth in the last year. The company has raised a total of $3.4 million in funding, including a recent $3 million seed round. - The acquisition is taking place within the growing "food as medicine" and "femtech" markets. The global femtech market was valued at over $9 billion in 2025 and is projected to grow to over $41 billion by 2034. The "food as medicine" market is expected to reach over $36 billion by 2034. - Epicured's services are eligible for HSA/FSA payments, and they are exploring partnerships with Medicare Advantage plans and employer benefit programs to further integrate their offerings into the healthcare system. - Chiyo was co-founded by CEO Irene Liu and Chief Culinary Officer Jennifer Jolorte Doro. The company's offerings are rooted in Eastern food therapy and nutritional science to support women through fertility, pregnancy, and postpartum. - Epicured was co-founded by CEO Richard Bennett and Renee Cherkezian. The company started with a focus on digestive disorders and has since expanded to support a range of chronic conditions, including diabetes and cardiovascular health.
